Bitcoin’s Wild Ride: Will It Crash or Soar?

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What to know:

By Omkar Godbole (All times ET unless indicated otherwise)

Ah, Bitcoin! The digital darling that’s been dancing on the tightrope of $75,000 like a circus performer with a wobbly knee. Since the Iran conflict kicked off (yes, that’s still happening), its price has been more dramatic than a soap opera. But hold your horses, because Hyperliquid has stolen the show! This decentralized perpetuals exchange has been trading commodity futures like a kid in a candy store, especially oil. Who needs traditional markets when you’ve got blockchain, eh?

Industry pundits are now frothing at the mouth over commodities, particularly energy. Prometheus Research says energy contracts are the new black, with “stronger expected Sharpe ratios, tighter physical markets, and supportive term structures.” Fancy talk for “it’s going to make some people very rich.” Meanwhile, Mining.com predicts nickel and other critical minerals will shine brighter than a disco ball. So, will onchain commodity markets suck the life out of Bitcoin? Only time will tell, but AI stocks already had their turn in the spotlight in 2024-25, leaving Bitcoin feeling a bit left out.

And let’s not forget inflation! Economists are waving their hands like mad, warning that the oil price rally could make central banks as cautious as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. The Fed’s rate decision is tomorrow, so grab your popcorn. Bitcoin may look buoyant, but rapid gains are as likely as a snowball surviving in hell. Prices briefly kissed $75,000 on Tuesday, thanks to short-covering in futures and options markets, but then slipped back like a guilty secret.

“When you pair that heavily hedged options market with the persistently negative perpetual funding rates we saw over the last couple of weeks, it became clear the market was heavily skewed – hedged, short, and under-owned,” Monarq Asset Management told CoinDesk. Fancy words for “it’s a mess.”

Meanwhile, the CoinDesk 20 Index and major tokens like ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), and solana (SOL) took a nosedive, while S&P 500 futures signaled that traditional markets are having a panic attack. Stay alert, indeed!

What to Watch

For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.

Token Events

For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.

Conferences

For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.

  • March 17: CBC Summit (London) – Where suits and blockchain enthusiasts collide.
  • Day 1 of 2: DC Blockchain Summit 2026 (Washington, D.C.) – Because bureaucracy loves blockchain.
  • Day 1 of 3: Merge São Paulo (Brazil) – Samba and smart contracts, a match made in heaven.

Market Movements

  • BTC is down 0.28% from 4 p.m. ET Monday at $73,668.91 (24hrs: +0.22%) – Taking the stairs down, one step at a time.
  • ETH is down 1.25% at $2,307.46 (24hrs: +1.76%) – Ether’s having a bad hair day.
  • CoinDesk 20 is down 0.96% at 2,147.86 (24hrs: +0.75%) – The index is feeling a bit blue.
  • Ether CESR Composite Staking Rate is up 7 bps at 2.81% – Staking’s the new black.
  • BTC funding rate is at -0.0054% (-5.9042% annualized) on Binance – Negative funding? Someone’s not having a good day.

  • DXY is up 0.09% at 99.80 – The dollar’s still flexing.
  • Gold futures are up 0.03% at $5,003.80 – Shiny and steady.
  • Silver futures are down 0.61% at $80.19 – Silver’s having a moment of self-doubt.
  • Nikkei 225 closed unchanged at 53,700.39 – Japan’s taking a nap.
  • Hang Seng closed up 0.13% at 25,868.54 – Hong Kong’s feeling slightly optimistic.
  • FTSE 100 is up 0.54% at 10,373.64 – The UK’s having a tea party.
  • Euro Stoxx 50 is up 0.45% at 5,764.94 – Europe’s cautiously cheerful.
  • DJIA closed on Monday up 0.83% at 46,946.41 – Wall Street’s doing the happy dance.
  • S&P 500 closed up 1.01% at 6,699.38 – The big boys are smiling.
  • Nasdaq Composite closed up 1.22% at 22,374.18 – Tech’s having a field day.
  • S&P/TSX Composite closed up 1.03% at 32,876.65 – Canada’s joining the party.
  • S&P 40 Latin America closed down 0.32% at 3,607.58 – Latin America’s taking a siesta.
  • U.S. 10-Year Treasury rate is down 7 bps at 4.22% – Bonds are chilling.
  • E-mini S&P 500 futures are up 0.61% at 6,745.75 – Futures are looking bright.
  • E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures are up 0.66% at 24,839.25 – Tech futures are on fire.
  • E-mini Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are up 0.59% at 47,261.00 – Dow futures are optimistic.

Bitcoin Stats

  • BTC Dominance: 59.06% (-0.17%) – Bitcoin’s still the king, but the crown’s a bit heavier.
  • Ether-bitcoin ratio: 0.0313 (-0.39%) – Ether’s trying to catch up, but Bitcoin’s not making it easy.
  • Hashrate (seven-day moving average): 935 EH/s – Miners are working overtime.
  • Hashprice (spot): $32.42 – Mining’s still profitable, but not a goldmine.
  • Total fees: 2.54 BTC / $187,439 – Fees are adding up.
  • CME Futures Open Interest: 115,130 BTC – Futures are buzzing.
  • BTC priced in gold: 14.8 oz. – Bitcoin’s shiny, but not as shiny as gold.
  • BTC vs gold market cap: 4.93% – Still a long way to go.

Technical Analysis

  • The chart shows daily swings in the ether-bitcoin ratio in candlestick format since November. – It’s a rollercoaster, folks!
  • The ratio surged 5% Monday, breaking out of a prolonged trend of choppy price action. – Ether’s having a moment.
  • The so-called bullish breakout suggests potential for continued ether outperformance ahead. – Will Ether steal the show? Stay tuned!

Crypto Equities

  • Coinbase Global (COIN): closed on Monday at $203.32 (+3.98%), +0.33% at $204.00 in pre-market – Coinbase is on a roll.
  • Circle Internet Group (CRCL): closed at $125.83 (+9.06%), +0.79% at $126.82 – Circle’s circling higher.
  • Galaxy Digital (GLXY): closed at $23.10 (+3.36%), unchanged – Galaxy’s holding steady.
  • MARA Holdings (MARA): closed at $9.23 (-0.97%), +0.11% at $9.24 – MARA’s having a wobble.
  • Riot Platforms (RIOT): closed at $14.40 (+2.56%), +0.21% at $14.43 – Riot’s rioting (in a good way).
  • Core Scientific (CORZ): closed at $16.97 (+2.91%), -0.41% at $16.90 – Core’s core is strong.
  • CleanSpark (CLSK): closed at $10.02 (+2.66%), +0.50% at $10.07 – CleanSpark’s sparking joy.
  • Exodus Movement (EXOD): closed at $9.32 (+3.90%) – Exodus is moving on up.
  • CoinShares Bitcoin Mining ETF (WGMI): closed at $40.45 (+5.68%), unchanged – WGMI’s winning.
  • Bullish (BLSH): closed at $39.62 (+8.19%), -1.29% at $39.11 – Bullish is bullish, mostly.

Crypto Treasury Companies

  • Strategy (MSTR): closed at $147.52 (+5.62%), -0.83% at $146.3 – Strategy’s strategizing.
  • Strive (ASST): closed at $10.86 (+13.96%), unchanged – Strive’s striving.
  • SharpLink Gaming (SBET): closed at $8.20 (+8.90%), +0.49% at $8.24 – SharpLink’s sharpening its game.
  • Upexi (UPXI): closed at $1.08 (-2.70%), +4.63% at $1.13 – Upexi’s up and down.
  • Lite Strategy (LITS): closed at $1.25 (+5.93%) – Lite’s feeling light.

ETF Flows

Spot BTC ETFs

  • Daily net flows: $199.4 million – Money’s flowing in.
  • Cumulative net flows: $56.31 billion – That’s a lot of zeros.
  • Total BTC holdings ~ 1.29 million – Bitcoin’s in high demand.

Spot ETH ETFs

  • Daily net flows: $35.9 million – Ether’s getting some love too.
  • Cumulative net flows: $11.86 billion – Not bad, not bad.
  • Total ETH holdings ~ 5.74 million – Ether’s stacking up.

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2026-03-17 14:33